“I felt like I was a criminal, I felt like I was a terrorist, like all the names I was called,” Ahmed said of the arrest to MSNBC, going on to explain that he had also been called a “bomb maker” by kids at his school in the past. While this story may have a sad beginning, it definitely has a happy ending. Once word of the boy’s arrest started to spread on social media, outrage grew and the hashtag #IStandwithAhmed began trending across the U.S. Soon, news of the incident reached all the way up to the White House, and the president himself invited Ahmed over to show off his “cool clock.”

Cool clock, Ahmed. Want to bring it to the White House? We should inspire more kids like you to like science. It’s what makes America great. — President Obama (@POTUS) September 16, 2015